University of Siena, Siena, Italy.
School of the Environment, Trent University, Peterborough, Canada.
Sci Rep. 2021 Feb 25;11(1):4564. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-84251-4.
The aim of this study was to assess if lichens (Flavoparmelia caperata) surrounding a landfill dumping site in Italy accumulated higher amounts of microplastics compared with lichens at more distant sites. Lichen samples were collected at three sites along a transect from the landfill: close (directly facing the landfill), intermediate (200 m), and remote (1500 m). Anthropogenic microparticles (fibres and fragments) were determined visually after wet peroxide digestion of the samples, and microplastics were identified based on a hot needle test; the type of plastic was identified by micro-Raman analysis. The results showed that lichens collected in the vicinity of the landfill accumulated the highest number of anthropogenic microfibres and fragments (147 mp/g dw), and consequently microplastics (79 mp/g dw), suggesting that the impact of landfill emissions is spatially limited. The proportion of fibres and fragments identified as microplastics was 40% across all sites and the most abundant polymer type was polyester or polyethylene terephthalate (68%). These results clearly indicated that lichens can effectively be used to monitor the deposition of microplastics.
本研究旨在评估意大利垃圾填埋场周围的地衣（Flavoparmelia caperata）与距离较远的地衣相比，是否积累了更多的微塑料。在地衣样本沿垃圾填埋场的一条横截线上从三个地点进行了采集：靠近（直接面对垃圾填埋场）、中间（200 米）和偏远（1500 米）。在对样品进行湿过氧化物消解后，通过肉眼观察确定人为微粒子（纤维和碎片），并通过热针测试确定微塑料；通过微拉曼分析确定塑料类型。结果表明，在垃圾填埋场附近采集的地衣积累了最多数量的人为微纤维和碎片（147mp/g dw），因此也积累了最多数量的微塑料（79mp/g dw），这表明垃圾填埋场排放的影响在空间上是有限的。在所有地点，被鉴定为微塑料的纤维和碎片比例均为 40%，最常见的聚合物类型是聚酯或聚对苯二甲酸乙二醇酯（68%）。这些结果清楚地表明，地衣可以有效地用于监测微塑料的沉积。
